Video review HERE.
This cigar was suggested to me by one of my regular Youtube viewers. After checking on the cigar I learned that it is actually a new release since the blend has changed.
(Description taken from Cigaraficionado.com website)
Ashton Distributors Inc. is shipping out reblended, repackaged and stronger versions of La Aroma de Cuba Edicion Especial, a line extension of the Aroma de Cuba brand. Among the changes are a fatter size, and an upgraded wrapper.
“It’s a little more dynamic: richer, stronger,” Ashton’s Sathya Levin told Cigar Aficionado this morning. “We didn’t do major surgery on it.”
While the blend looks the same on paper—Ecuador wrapper, Nicaraguan filler and Nicaraguan binder—Levin said the blend has been tweaked. One of the biggest changes is in the wrapper. It remains Ecuador Havana, but the new wrappers come from higher primings, meaning they grow on a higher portion of the tobacco plant. High-priming tobacco tends to be stronger than tobacco that grows lower on the plant.
The cigars are made by the Pepin Garcia family in Nicaragua, just like before. Tobacco for the cigars is grown by the Garcias in Estelí, Jalapa, and Namanji, Nicaragua.
Among the changes are one new size, the No. 60. Measuring six inches long by 60 ring gauge, it’s the fattest smoke in the line. Gone are the Minuto (a petit corona) and the No. 55, which measured 5 1/2 by 55. (The brand also had a lancero, but it wasn’t part of the regular line; it was a special edition released roughly 10 years ago.)
There are five other remaining sizes: No. 1, measuring 5 5/8 inches long by 46 ring gauge; No. 2 (5 by 50); No. 3 (6 by 50) (REVIEWED TODAY); No. 4 (7 by 49) and No. 5, a belicoso measuring 5 1/2 by 52. La Aroma de Cuba Edicion Especial ranges in price from $7.50 to $8.90 per cigar and comes in boxes of 25.
The cigar is nicely made and has a nice feel in the hand.
The test draw after cutting the cap was very good. The initial flavors at light up reminded me of apple sauce. Now, the actual flavors were cedar, brown sugar, caramel, sour nutmeg, leather, and black coffee at the base. There was black pepper rated at 7 1/2. Based on the actual flavors you might not see how this cigar could remind me of a thick apple sauce but it does. The sour nutmeg is not a flavor I am a fan of, however.
At the first third (27 minutes) the cigar has settled down and it's much nicer. Now I had a tangy cedar, brown sugar, caramel, nutmeg (without the sour flavor), leather, and black coffee. The nutmeg and leather are in a nice amount, also. Even now that the flavors have settled they still remind me of apple sauce. (maybe it's just me.) The cigar is medium bodied and moving up. The finish has leather, nutmeg, brown sugar, and cedar with a nice amount of lingering black pepper. The cigar starts out a little deceiving but quickly settles down into a nice flavor mix. The caramel is coming through nicely. The cigar is very nice at this point. I rated the first third 94.
At the second third (58 minutes) the same flavor notes were in play but now the darker notes are moving up. I see this a lot; the nutmeg and leather are rising taking away some of the sweeter notes. But in this case it is not hurting the cigar too much. The cigar was very sweet and now the sweeter notes are toned down to more of a normal amount. The cigar is now medium to full bodied. The finish is unchanged. I rated the second third 93.
The cigar lasted 1 hour 23 minutes. In the final third the sweeter notes I had were cedar, lower levels of brown sugar, and a dash of caramel. But, they are dwarfed by the darker notes of nutmeg, leather, and black coffee. The cigar is a low grade full bodied. The finish is unchanged. Even though the darker notes rose substantially the cigar is still pretty good. The cigar is still enjoyable but it's quite dark at this point. I rated the final third 91. This is a pretty good cigar that I would suggest you try. I'm glad it was suggested to me for review.
Overall Score: 92.67
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